HEAD TRANSPLANT

On June 11, 2015 Sergio Canavero of the Turin Advanced Neuromodulation Group in Italy will announce a project at the annual conference of the American Academy of Neurological and Orthopaedic Surgeons (AANOS) in Annapolis, Maryland. As the keynote speaker of the said conference, he will unveil his project which he had initially announced in 2013. That will be the first human head transplant. He will present before medical practioners what will be the world's first attempt to transplant a human head from one’s original body to another.  Canavero published recently the summary of techniques he will be employing to realize such pioneering medical endeavor. Though still in its initial stage, Canavero’s prospect of human head transplant faces ethical questions as to the morality of transplanting a human head to another human body.

To St. Thomas Aquinas, man is composed of his body and soul. Human being is consist of a soul and a body. Thus the body is an integral part of the whole human being consisting of body and soul. A human being ceases to be such when he loses this body, for it is this body that his soul informs. The soul is so ingrained in this body so much so that Aquinas would even say that the soul is united to the body as its form, it must necessarily be in the whole body, and in each part thereof (ST I. Q76. A8). Sedquia anima uniturcorporiut forma, necesseest quod sit in toto, et in qualibet parte corporis. The soul being in every part of the body, and to the whole, enables the existence of a human being. Thus a particular human is because of a particular human soul that informs a particular body, becoming a human body. In the absence of a human soul, the human body ceases to be such and instead becomes a collection of bodies (organs). Thus vital to the integrity of the human being is the unity between his body and soul, more so the unity of the body.

The proposed human head transplant may posit issues on the integrity of the body and soul of a human being. The transferring of a human head to another human body trunk infers the decapitation of the head from its original trunk. Though one’s head may still be considered as one’s part of his body, a substantial portion of this body will be lost in the process of human head transplantation. This substantial portion of one’s body contributes a lot to the very identity of a human being; to his gender, race, metabolism, way of thinking etc. The dismembering of the human head from its proper human body causes the disintegration of the human body, of the human being; of the human soul from the particular human body it informs. Such disintegration has myriads of implications on the identity and functionality of human soul in relation with the ‘new’ human body trunk with which it is substantiality attached. Will the human being be the same human being before the human head transplantation, before being dismembered from its original body? Will he behave and think the same with its ‘new’ body? 

According to studies some people who have received face or limb transplants mourn the loss of their old body part or feel that their self image is conflicted (Helen Thomson, 6 things you're dying to ask about head transplants). The body trunk composed a substantial part of a human being. Removal of such would imply a removal of a substantial part of a human being. That can have a devastating effect on the psyche of the person such as the feeling of incompleteness (because of the loss part of the person) and alienation from the body (which does not originally belongs to the person) with which the head is attached. David Robson says that human beings tend to view the mind as an aloof, disembodied entity but it is becoming increasingly clear that the whole body is involved in the thinking process (David Robson, Your clever body: Thinking from head to toe).The thinking process, too, then can be affected by the human head transplantation as one will have a new body that is totally former to him and his way of thinking. This shows that a person’s trunk is a unique part of the human person that functions and contributes to the holistic well-being of the person. One may possess a new and healthy body, but it is undeniable that such is not his, that such is not the very body his soul informs.

These feelings and difficulties that a person who would undergo a head transplantation can be traced back from the disintegration of the unity between a substantial part of his body (trunk) and his soul; a substantial part that contributes to his identity and ways of thinking and living. The severing/cutting of the head from the trunk or decapitation causes the disintegration of the body. Such is clear example of amputation in a larger scale. The ethical principle of beneficence and non-maleficence or do no harm are in tension in this case. Will the head transplant contribute to the well-being of the person involve? It may. However, the devastating effects of having a different body, alien from you may posits otherwise. Base on a case mentioned above, persons who had undergone face transplant had psychological difficulty in accepting such change in their physique and the loss of a substantial part of the body. Will the surgery harm the person? It may not. However, the untested surgery with human persons and the uncertainties in the techniques proposed by Canavero posits otherwise. The life of the person engage with head transplant may be placed in danger by the untested surgery. Should the surgery be successful the psychological problems the person may face in having a new and alien body may postulate another problem.The ethical principles of beneficence and non-maleficence may be in tension in this case, in line with the integrity of the human body and soul. And they are tilting more to the negative as the life of the person involve in being placed in a risk not proportionate with the benefits he may gain.  

The human head transplantation may be promising as a potential beneficial surgery for those who are ill. The procedure may save the lives of many body recipients who would otherwise die.Many families suffering the loss of a loved one may take comfort in knowing that the body of their loved one made it possible for one dying person to live. But on the onset of its conceptualization various ethical questions are already raised pertaining to it; Who would be the body donors? Who would be the body recipients? How would the body procurement proceed? Who would decide who can donate or receive a body? How high is the probability of a successful transplants? How does it addresses the possibility of body rejection?  

There are surely a lot of ethical question regarding the possibility and implications of a human head transplantation. But for now this paper satisfies itself with the question on the disunity of the human soul with the substantial part of the human body. 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that those from the living are morally good so long as the dangers incurred by donor the donor are proportionate to the good sought for the recipient and those from the dead are noble and meritorious so long as valid consent has been given (No. 2296). The Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services (ERDs) has similar teaching on organ donations from the living, specifying however that the donation will not sacrifice or seriously impair and essential functioning of the donor. It offers some important specifics on such procedures from the dead, e.g., only competent medical authorities ought to determine that a person has died, to avoid conflicts of interest the physician determining death ought not be a member of the transplant team (Directives, 62. 64).